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News release

Graduate invests $1 million in alma mater

J. Sebastian van Berkom donates to John Molson School of Business

Montreal, February 5, 2015 — Concordia’s brightest business students will have a rare opportunity to become elite investors — using real money — thanks to a $1 million donation from alumnus J. Sebastian van Berkom. The gift lays the foundation for the Van Berkom Small-Cap Investment Management Program at the John Molson School of Business.

The program will accept eight graduate students annually, initially as research associates who will transition to fund managers who run small-cap stock portfolios.  Their goal: achieve returns above a small-cap North American benchmark. Small-caps are firms with market capitalizations between $75 million and $1.5 billion.

“Concordia accepted me as a student and I’ve done tremendously well ever since,” says J. Sebastian van Berkom, president and CEO of Van Berkom and Associates Inc. “I believe in giving back. I want to give students the same kind of experience that I had.”

The program targets MBA, doctoral, MSc Finance and CFA students. The program will run 18-24 months from 2016.

“Sebastian’s latest contribution to the John Molson School of Business builds on a legacy of tremendous generosity towards his alma mater,” says Concordia President Alan Shepard. “Students will gain exceptional experience — knowledge that opens doors to careers in global capital markets, thanks to his remarkable gift.”

Students of the Van Berkom Small-Cap Investment Management Program will benefit from industry internships and mentor support.

“The Van Berkom Small-Cap Investment Management Program will give JMSB students a rare, real-life opportunity to garner returns by investing in high-quality companies trading below their intrinsic value,” says Steve Harvey, dean of Concordia’s John Molson School of Business.

A graduate of Sir George Williams University, one of Concordia’s founding institutions, Van Berkom has so far donated $2.3 million to Concordia. His gifts support the Van Berkom Chair in Small-Cap Equities Endowment, the Van Berkom JMSB Small-Cap Case Competition, the Van Berkom and Associates Inc. Bursary and the Frederick Lowy Scholars Endowment.


Media Contacts

Wendy Herskovitz
Senior Administrative Assistant
Van Berkom and Associates Inc.
Tel: 514-985-5759, ext. 239
wherskovitz@vbassociates.com



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